Dr Tanuka Sen
Researcher biography
Dr Tanuka Sen is a Research Fellow at the Institute for Molecular Biosciences, The University of Queensland, where her research focuses on understanding bacterial pathogenesis and developing innovative strategies to combat antimicrobial resistance.
Dr. Sen completed her PhD in Biochemistry and Biomedical Science at the Australian National University before undertaking postdoctoral research at the University of Oxford, where she developed single-cell microscopy approaches to visualise the dynamics of bacterial virulence plasmids in real time. She has contributed to research on bacterial toxin-antitoxin systems, plasmid biology, antimicrobial resistance, and genome analysis.
Her research integrates microbiology, molecular biology, bacterial genetics, advanced fluorescence microscopy, bioinformatics, and antimicrobial drug discovery to investigate bacterial virulence, plasmid biology, host-pathogen interactions, and the mechanisms of action of novel antimicrobial compounds. She is particularly interested in translating fundamental discoveries into new approaches to combat antibiotic-resistant pathogens.
Research expertise includes:
- Antimicrobial resistance (AMR)
- Antimicrobial drug discovery and mode of action
- Bacterial pathogenesis and virulence
- Infection biology
- Fluorescence and confocal microscopy
- Single-cell and live-cell imaging
- Functional genomics and bioinformatics
- Plasmid biology and horizontal gene transfer
- Bacterial genetics and molecular microbiology
She welcomes opportunities for interdisciplinary research, student supervision, industry engagement, and collaborations that advance antimicrobial innovation and improve global health.